The French government has formally accused Russian military intelligence of orchestrating a series of high-profile cyberattacks, including the 2017 hacking of Emmanuel Macron’s presidential campaign and recent strikes targeting French media and entities tied to the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. In a statement released Tuesday, France’s foreign ministry directly implicated the Kremlin-backed APT28 hacking group—also known as “Fancy Bear”—which operates under Russia’s GRU military intelligence service. The group has previously been accused of interfering in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. The

The French government has formally accused Russian military intelligence of orchestrating a series of high-profile cyberattacks, including the 2017 hacking of Emmanuel Macron’s presidential campaign and recent strikes targeting French media and entities tied to the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. In a statement released Tuesday, France’s foreign ministry directly implicated the Kremlin-backed APT28 hacking group—also known as “Fancy Bear”—which operates under Russia’s GRU military intelligence service. The group has previously been accused of interfering in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. The accusation marks the first time Paris has officially attributed the 2017 Macron campaign breach to Russia. Just days before the final presidential vote in May 2017, thousands of internal emails and documents from Macron’s team were leaked online in what appeared to be an attempt to sway voters. While some documents were reportedly falsified, French officials said the disinformation campaign ultimately failed to influence the outcome. Macron went on to defeat far-right challenger Marine Le Pen. "Thousands of documents were stolen and disseminated in the hope of manipulating voters, but the manoeuvre failed to have any real impact on the electoral process," the foreign ministry stated in an online video shared by Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot. You can Also read this: Nigeria: 26 Killed by Roadside Bomb Following Governor’s Boko Haram Comeback Warning The ministry also linked the GRU to a 2015 cyberattack on TV5Monde, France’s public television network. In that incident, hackers posed as Islamic State operatives in an effort to sow fear and manipulate public opinion, temporarily knocking the station off the air. More recently, since 2021, APT28 has reportedly intensified its targeting of French interests, including organizations tied to defense, finance, and critical infrastructure. The group also allegedly breached a French sports institution involved in the preparation of the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Barrot condemned the cyber activities, stating that “Russian military intelligence has been carrying out cyber-attacks against France for several years using a method known as APT28.” A report by France’s National Cybersecurity Agency (ANSSI), also released Tuesday, detailed how the group continues to gather strategic intelligence across France, Europe, Ukraine, and North America. APT28 is known for breaching personal email accounts to steal sensitive data and infiltrate wider networks, often as a precursor to broader information warfare or sabotage campaigns. In September 2024, international intelligence agencies—including those in Germany—issued warnings about increased cyber threats from APT28 against NATO member states. "France condemns in the strongest terms the use by Russia’s military intelligence service of the APT28 attack group, at the origin of several cyber-attacks on French interests," the foreign ministry stated. "Alongside its partners, France is determined to use all the means at its disposal to anticipate Russia’s malicious behaviour in cyberspace, discourage it, and respond where necessary."

A little more informed. A little more connected.